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Well, good afternoon, everyone. It’s good to see you all today. Couple of weeks ago, I decided to smoke a three-pound roast and a couple dozen wings on my grill. I was asking my wife how big the roast was. I was thinking it was like ten pounds. She was like, “No, it was like three pounds.” But maybe it’s like a fishing story, the meat just gets bigger and bigger as you smoke it. But anyway, I was smoking, decided to smoke some meats. Those of you who like doing that sort of thing could totally imagine the pleasure I was feeling, and it was the first time doing it this season, so I had to clean out the grill.

There were all kind of critters, and all sorts of things sort of around it, so don’t worry if you had some of the food, I cleaned it well, family. But I did clean the grill and I got everything going and it turned out pretty well. If I could say so myself, I’ve had a little practice at it, and I’ve gotten fairly decent. And I was grilling meats out on the deck like every man would want to do. Ladies, I’m sure you like to do it, too, but my wife was inside, and she was making sides, and this was all in preparation for our meal that Sunday. And it got me thinking, “You know what? I think I could open a restaurant if I wanted to do this real time.”

And it turns out, you know, restaurants after looking into it, restaurants and I have quite a bit of equipment needed, and tools needed. And actually, they’re actually some of the most intense tools-heavy businesses that there are. And between the equipment and the tools that you need, you need ovens, you need ranges. You need slicers, and dishwashers, and sinks, and all sorts of things in order to make that restaurant run. So, when it was all said and done, I decided to stick to my Weber grill and just cook for my family.

But it’s interesting. You think about tools, and it got me thinking about tools in preparation for this message. And actually, earlier this week, we were mulching, and we mulched parts of the campus and, you know, I was imagining trying to do that without tools. You know, we had rakes, we had pitchforks, we had carts. There was a skid steer. I saw a dump truck speeding by back and forth, just all sorts of shovels, all sorts of tools that we needed in order to get the mulching done.

And it was certainly much appreciated, much better than trying to mulch... carrying mulch in two hands quarter of a mile from the mulch pile to the mulch bed. Seems ridiculous, but, you know, it’s something we didn’t have to do because we had all those tools that were helpful and able to help us get the job done. Now, people use tools all the time. I just gave you a couple of examples. There are people who use tools all the time. We use them at work. We use them at home. We use them in school.

You know, there’s all sorts of tools that help us to learn and to get educated, whether it’s computers or notebooks and pencils and erasers and calculators, and all kinds of things that we use in order to learn. And that’s just in school. And like I said, we use tools at work and at home as well. But tools help us get the job done. Now, brethren, did you know that we are not the only ones to use tools? God also uses tools. Believe it or not, God also uses tools. In fact, He uses tools all the time. All the time.

So today, let’s discover the tools that God uses to get His job done. Now, when you think about a tool, most people probably think of a wrench, or a ratchet, or a screwdriver, or a hammer, and that sort of thing, and those. That certainly is a tool. I named several tools for cooking. As I explained, there were tools for mulching that I talked about, too. And I even gave some examples for school. But a tool is any piece of equipment used to perform a specific task or any kind of work.

So that means tools can be just about anything. They can be used for cutting, shaping, manipulating, this microphone in front of me is a tool that’s projecting my voice. It’s anything that could be used to complete a certain task. And depending on your vocation, depending on what you’re trying to get accomplished, you have different sorts of tools available to you. If you think about a musician, a musician will have tools that are instruments, a violin, a guitar, a flute, a piano. Those are tools that a musician would use.

Scientists would use microscope, would use spectrometers, thermometers, all sorts of things to do his or her job. Or a doctor using a stethoscope, an MRI machine. You understand? So, these are all tools, all things that anyone uses to get a certain job done. And I explain it that way because I want to expand our thinking. I want us to expand our thinking when it comes to tools, and especially when I talk about God using tools. We, like God, want to make sure that we use the right tool for the right job.

You know, if you’ve ever tried to hammer a nail with a screwdriver, who’s done it? I’ve done it. That’s what I had in my hand at the time. You try to hammer a nail with a screwdriver, or a screwdriver a nail with a screwdriver, it’s almost impossible. You’re hitting it, you’re missing it. You’re nicking it up, you’re causing damage. Or you try to eat salad with a spoon. Who’s tried it? I tried it earlier this week, actually, and it was quite messy. I didn’t want to get, “Ah, I can eat this with a spoon. I don’t need a fork.” Who needs a fork? And my tie did not appreciate the gesture, so I had to eventually get a fork.

But we want to make sure that we use the right tool for the right job. So, whenever I want to accomplish a task or you want to accomplish a task, it’s important, brethren, of course, to use the right tools. Now, go to Genesis chapter one. Go to Genesis chapter one. I really want to lay this foundation. Help us to understand, you know, what tools are, we think about them, pretty much know what they are. But I wanted to make sure that we understood that first of all, there are tools, and just as important that a tool is used to accomplish a certain task or to get something done.

Now, I said that God... you’re here in Genesis one. I said that God uses tools, and He does. And it’s also true that God has a certain task or certain thing that He wants to get accomplished. Let’s read here in Genesis chapter one. What is God seeking to accomplish? What work is He looking to do? What plan, what project does He have in mind? Genesis chapter one, we’ll pick it up in verse twenty-six. Genesis chapter one, verse twenty-six.

“And God said, let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps upon the earth. So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created He him; male and female, created he them.” So very early on, right in the beginning, book of Genesis, we’re seeing that God has a plan or a project that He’s seeking to complete. Now, it may not be fully obvious there, but when we put it with other verses, which we’ll go to in a moment, we understand that God has this big, huge project in mind.

He has this huge task that He wants to complete. Who knows how long He’s wanted to complete this task? You can estimate it could just go back millions, maybe even billions of years. But it’s saying here that this plan, this task, began with God making man in his own image, giving that man dominion, and He created man, male and female. Let’s go to Hebrews chapter two. Hebrews chapter two. God has a plan, a project that He’s seeking to complete. Hebrews chapter two, verse six.

Hebrews chapter two, verse six. Now, when we read the following verses, we’ll begin to see the connection. We’ll begin to see this plan that God has in mind. Hebrews chapter two let’s pick it up in verse six. “But one in a certain place testified, saying, what is man that you are mindful of him? or the son of man, that you visit him?” God, why do you care about the affairs of men? “You made him a little lower than the angels...” we read earlier about God making man, “...you crowned him with glory and honor, and did set him over the works of your hands.”

Remember, we talked about dominion. God gave man dominion when He created him. Verse eight. “You have put all things in subjection under his feet. For in that he put all in subjection under him, he left nothing that is not put under him. But now we see not yet all things put under him.” Verse ten. “For it became him, for whom are all things, and by whom are all things, and bringing many sons into glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings...” this is referring to Christ. “But many sons...” it talks about, “...for both He that sanctifies and they who are sanctified are all of one: for which cause he is not ashamed to call them brethren.”

So, we’re reading about brethren, the brethren of Christ, sons of God, call to glory. So, when we put that together with Genesis, we could very easily see that from the very beginning, God’s project, God’s plan was to reproduce himself, was to recreate himself, and He began with man, male and female. He began with man and eventually, those men, male and female, would become God. So, God is reproducing himself. That is the project. That is the grand plan. That is the Task, with the capital T, that God has in mind. And He had it in mind from the very beginning. Everything else in the Scriptures is based on this plan that God has in mind, this project that God wants to complete, this thing that God wants to get done.

The plan, brethren, the plan that I just explained, is bigger than the Restored Church of God. Just turned twenty-five today. It’s a wonderful thing. Can’t believe I get to be a part of it. It’s even bigger. This plan is even bigger than the Church, the called-out ones, those who are responsible and who represent God at this time. The plan that I just explained to you is a universal plan. It is huge. It is big. It goes back before any of the things that I just named, before the Church, obviously, before The Restored Church of God.

God’s plan was from the very beginning in working with mankind and reproducing himself. It’s key that we understand that. It’s very important that we understand that because as we go along, we’re going to talk about these different tools, and we’re going to talk about how God uses those tools. And we won’t benefit from it as much if we don’t appreciate the bigness of what God is doing. If we don’t understand the size and the scope of this plan, this project, this Task, again with the capital T, that God is looking to implement. God is busy. He’s working. John five. God is building something. God is making something. He’s a Creator. That’s one of His titles.

John five. We read this verse often, but I want us to look at it or think about it in the context of God with this master project, John five, seventeen, “But Jesus answered them, My Father works hitherto, and I work.” Well, what are they doing? They’re doing the very thing that I just explained. The Father and Christ are busy working, doing the thing that was described in Genesis and that we read about in Hebrews. God and Christ, both of them. God from his throne in heaven, Christ who’s now back with God alongside him, but Christ who was here on earth. Everything that He did ties in in some ways directly or indirectly with this project that He’s working on. And God is not just working, He’s enjoying it.

Let’s go to Psalm one hundred and four. There’s a saying that if you enjoy your job, you’ll never work another day in your life. If you enjoy it, I enjoy my job, many of you I’m sure enjoy your job. Some of you probably hate your job. I had jobs I hated before, but that makes it that much more special when you enjoy your job, and God is enjoying what He’s doing. Psalms one hundred and four, verse thirty-one. Psalm one hundred and four, thirty-one, “The glory of the Lord shall endure forever: for...” excuse me, “...the Lord shall rejoice in his works.”

You know, remember back in Genesis, God said that when He created everything, it was good. Before He rested, He said it was good. God is enjoying the job that He’s doing. I’m sure there are times where He’s grieved, there’s times where He’s not happy, there’s times where He’d rather see things and people make different decisions, but overall, God is enjoying his work. He’s enjoying this task that He gave himself. Christ the same. So, with this job in mind, brethren, and like any job, God has tools. He has things that He uses in order to get the project completed, to complete the task that’s in front of him.

There are many tools at God’s disposal, and some tools you may not even consider. Turn to First Samuel chapter twelve. First Samuel chapter twelve. One of the tools God uses is the weather. God uses the weather. First Samuel chapter twelve, I might have said two. First Samuel chapter twelve, verse sixteen. First Samuel twelve, sixteen, “Now, therefore, stand and see this great thing, which the Lord will do before your eyes.” So, we’re seeing right out of the gate this is something that God is doing. It’s not something that’s happened passive, it’s not just something that’s just by happenstance.

This is the thing which the Lord will do before your eyes. “Is it not wheat harvest today? I will call into the Lord, and he shall send thunder and rain; that you may perceive and see that your wickedness is great, which you have done in the sight of the Lord, in asking you a king.” So, okay, think about communication and God working with us and us having a relationship or contact with God. How does God commune or talk with us? How does He show his thoughts or his feelings on certain matters?

I’ve not heard the voice of God, I’ve not seen hands, a hand come out of heaven with a thumbs up, thumbs down. I’ve not seen anything like that. You’re picturing it, aren’t you? It’s probably a good thing we haven’t seen that. But we’re seeing here that it’s saying God used thunder and rain that they may see their wickedness is great. So, God used the weather as a tool to communicate his feelings. So, “Samuel verse eighteen, called upon the Lord; and the Lord sent thunder and rain that day and all the people greatly feared the Lord and Samuel.”

So, because of this weather, this tool that God created, people understood and were able to see how God felt, you know, about this matter. God not only uses weather; He uses animals as tools. Exodus twenty-three. Exodus twenty-three. A tool you’ll remember is anything used to perform a specific kind of work, to perform a specific task. Tools can be all sorts of things, not just wrenches and hammers and ratchets, Weber grills, pencils, books, calculators. Tools can be all sorts of things.

Exodus twenty-three, we’ll pick it up at verse twenty-seven. I mentioned that God uses animals. He can use an animal as a tool. Exodus twenty-three twenty-seven. “I will send my fear before you, and I will destroy all the people to whom you shall come, and I will make all your enemies turn their backs to you.” So, this is God declaring and saying what He’s willing to do. Verse twenty-eight, “And I will send hornets before you, which shall drive out the Hivite, the Canaanite, and the Hittite from before you, but I will not drive them out from you in one year; lest the land become desolate, and the beasts of the field multiply against you. By little and little I will drive them out from before you, until you be increased, and inherit the land.

And I will set my bounds from the Red Sea even to the Sea of the Philistines...” and so on and so forth. So, we’re seeing here, God is saying, “I will use hornets, so I will control hornets, and I will cause those hornets to clear out the land.” And like any master craftsman or someone who’s looking to complete a task and do it with precision, God sent the hornets in a precision-like fashion. He didn’t just send all the hornets at once and everyone just went, “ah,” and just ran out of the land.

He did it little by little, and He slowly pushed them, pushed the people out of the land until the Israelites were in a position to be able to take over. Otherwise, the land would not have been fit to live in. So, I focus there because God is precise with that tool. That tool just happened to be hornets. But a carpenter is very precise with his tools. A mechanic, a chef, God was no different. God sometimes uses angels as tools. First Kings twenty-two. First Kings twenty-two. Angels are ministering spirits.

They are there at God’s beck and call and used for His purpose. First Kings twenty-two, verse nineteen. First Kings twenty-two, nineteen. Fascinating picture here, brethren. I kept reading this. I was getting distracted as I was preparing this message because it was just an amazing scene as I meditated and thought about what we’re going to read here. But First Kings twenty-two. We’ll pick it up at verse nineteen. Just underline the words to paint a picture in your mind’s eye of what you’re reading.

First Kings twenty-two, we’ll pick it up at first nineteen. “And he said, hear you therefore the word of the Lord: I saw the Lord sitting on his throne...” Okay. This is God on his throne, “...and all the host of heaven standing by him on his right hand and his left.” Now, this is just coming off of earlier in the chapter that was talking about two kings sitting on their throne. So, you have these kings, kings sit on thrones. Coming off of that, we’re now getting a picture of God sitting on his throne and God is surrounded by the hosts of heaven, surrounded by angels.

“And the Lord said...” verse twenty, “...who shall persuade Ahab, that he may go up and fall at Ramothgilead? And one said on this manner, and another said on that manner.” And what that’s saying is God posed this question and the angels began to converse amongst themselves. “Okay, how are we going to deal with this? How are we going to either answer this question? How are we going to be able to fulfill this task that God has laid out before us?” Imagine that.

You know, you have God sitting on his throne, He’s in his throne room, you have these angels, these hosts of heaven surrounding these powerful beings. God poses this question, and then they start talking with each other. Talking with each other. “Okay, what about this, what about this, what about this? We can try this; we can try that.” Fascinating. Okay, I can’t find my place here. Verse twenty-one, “And there came forth a spirit...” so they had been talking back and forth, and a brave spirit stepped up and stood before the Lord, and said, “I will persuade him.” I’ll do it. I’ll take care of it.

“And the Lord said unto him, wherewith?” So how will you do it? “He said, I’ll go forth and I’ll be a lying spirit in the mouth of all these prophets. And He said, You shall persuade him and prevail also: go forth and do so.” So, this spirit volunteered to go and get himself involved and to take care of it. Verse twenty-three, “Now therefore, behold, the Lord have put a lying spirit in the mouth of all these your prophets, and the Lord has spoken evil concerning you.”

So, we see this tool, this angel, being used to accomplish a certain task. And in this case, this angel, just like the weather, just like the animals, the hornets, was being used in a way to be able to accomplish the task that God wanted to accomplish. Brethren, God has many tools to get the job done, but his primary tools, believe it or not, are people. Isaiah sixty-four. Isaiah sixty-four. God’s primary tools are people. That’s interesting because the task, the project, the plan also involves people. So, we’re going to see here that God uses people to work on people.

Isaiah sixty-four. Isaiah sixty-four. It’s foundational verse in understanding here. Isaiah sixty-four, verse eight, just one verse, “But now, O Lord, you are our father; we are the clay, and you are our potter; and we are all the work of your hand.” So, we saw in Genesis God created man, remember? Male and female created, Adam it was… they were made in His image. We’re seeing here that God as a Father is the potter, we are the clay.

You think about a lump of clay, and it’s on a spinning wheel. You’ve all seen it. It’s pretty messy and it’s spinning, and God is working and kneading, or that potter is kneading and working with that clay, manipulating it and shaping that clay into something that can be useful. If it’s a vase, you can put flowers in it. If it’s a cup, you can drink out of it. If it’s a bowl, you can eat out of it. So, God formed us to complete a certain job, Isaiah forty-five. Isaiah forty-five. God makes his tools and then uses his tools.

Isaiah forty-five, verse seven. Isaiah forty-five, seven. This is God speaking and just think of the majesty and the power and the awe that these words inspire. “I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil: I the Lord do these things. Drop down, you heavens, from above, and let the skies pour forth righteousness: let the earth open, and let them bring forth salvation, and let righteousness spring up together; I the Lord have created it. Woe unto him that strives with his Maker! Let the potsherds strive with the potsherds of the earth. Shall the clay say unto him that fashioned it, what make you or why work? He has no hands or your work, he has no hands. Woe unto them that say unto his father, what beget you? or to the woman, what has brought you forth?”

You imagine a clay pot somehow being able to speak, turning to the potter, and saying, “Why are you making me like this? Who do you think you are? I’m the clay, you’re the potter.” It doesn’t even make sense, does it? It’s the other way around. “Thus says the Lord, the Holy One of Israel, and his Maker, Ask me of things to come concerning my sons, and concerning the work of my hand. My hands command you me.”

So, we see clearly that in this analogy that the pot is our sons. They’re people. “I have made the earth...” God continues, “...and created man upon it: I, even my hands, have stretched out the heavens, and all their hosts have I commanded.” God created the universe, the entire universe, the galaxies, the planets within them. Obviously, the people on this one planet. “I have raised him up...” referring to man, “...in righteousness, and I will direct all his ways: he shall build my city, and he shall let go my captives, not for a price nor reward, says the Lord of hosts.”

We’ve all heard the phrase, you’ve all likely heard the phrase, if you haven’t, you’ll hear it now, but you’ve all heard that God works through people or God works through flesh. Probably heard that as well. It’s very much the same thing. But God works through flesh. This is a very, very powerful principle. Turn to First Timothy chapter one. First Timothy chapter one. God works through flesh. I’ll tell you the fact that God works through flesh can be one of the most inspiring things and it can be the most challenging things.

God works through flesh. First Timothy chapter one, we’ll read verse seventeen. First Timothy chapter one, verse seventeen. Let’s understand this about God. “Now, unto the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only wise God, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen.” God is invisible. We can’t see him. We can’t smell him. We can’t taste him. We can’t touch him. God is invisible. So much so that some people don’t believe He exists. They think He’s a fiction. That it’s a made-up fairy tale, that it’s a bedtime story, that it’s people who are weak who have to believe in something.

They have to believe in some higher being in order to feel good about themselves. But we can’t see God. But does that mean He doesn’t exist? Of course not. Of course not. There is a God. He just works through physical things. He works through things that physical people can see, can touch, can taste, can smell. God works through leaders, for instance. Let’s go to Daniel two. Daniel chapter two. What trips people up is they see you talk about this idea of God working through flesh.

That sounds good, but when God is working through flesh, sometimes we only see the flesh. We don’t necessarily see the God working through that flesh. Daniel chapter two is an example. Daniel chapter two, verse twenty. Daniel chapter two, verse twenty, “And Daniel said, blessed be the name of God forever and ever: for wisdom and might are his.” So, we’re talking about God being wise and mighty. “And He, meaning God, changes times and seasons: he removes kings, and sets up kings: he gives wisdom unto the wise, and knowledge to them that know understanding: He reveals the deep and secret things: he knows what is in the darkness, and the light dwells with him.”

God is behind the scenes manipulating and putting certain things in place, but we don’t see him doing it. He selects leaders to do it. He selects the presidents and the prime ministers and the mayors. God accomplishes what He wants to accomplish through flesh, through people. And God knows how to use the right tool for the right job. Brethren, that’s why we have to be very careful taking sides. We don’t vote. But we also don’t take sides. Why? Because we could be voting for or going with the tool opposite the one that God has in place.

If we’re not careful, if we vent or we become too upset with the state of affairs in a given country, in a given town, in a given job, and you have the boss that’s there, we could very well be fighting the tool that God put in place to get his will accomplished. Man, when you think about it like that, it’s not so easy to allow ourselves to get upset. Does it mean we’ll never get upset because a particular leader, maybe our boss, did something that we didn’t like? It doesn’t mean that, but I challenge you, I charge you, I charge myself to remember God is the one that puts certain people in place. He is the one that uses tools to accomplish His purpose.

Let’s stay here in Daniel and go to chapter four just to build off of that. Daniel four, seventeen. Daniel four, seventeen. “This matter is by decree of the watchers, and the demand by the word of the holy ones: to the intent that the living may know...” so we’re all alive in this room, everyone that will be hearing this are alive, “...that the living may know that the Most High rules in the kingdom of men...” God rules in the Kingdom of Men, “...and gives it to whomsoever He will, and sets up over it the basis of men.” God is in control of affairs. God has a huge project that He is working on. This large task that will get accomplished. To accomplish that task, God will use whatever tools He chooses.

Romans chapter thirteen. Romans chapter thirteen, we’ll pick it up at the beginning of the chapter. Romans thirteen, verse one. “Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers.” Now, let that rest on your ears. Are we excluded from that? Are the people at Giant Eagle, is the grocery store next door excluded from that? Are people in France or Tennessee or California or wherever? Is anyone who will be considered a soul, anyone who is alive exempt from that? No. “Let every soul be subject or come under higher powers. For there is no power but of God.” The powers that be are ordained of God.

Remember, I talked about the bigness of this plan God is working out. Everything comes under what God is doing, what He will accomplish. “For whosoever therefore resists the power...” so now that we’ve established that all powers are ordained of God, “...therefore, whosoever resists the power, resists the ordinance of God: and they that resist shall receive to themselves damnation or judgment. For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to the evil.” Rulers aren’t there... I’ll say it this way, you shouldn’t be worried if you’re doing the right thing.

So rulers aren’t there to terrorize you doing something good, they’re there when you’re doing something that’s not good. “Will you then not be afraid of the power? Do that which is good, and you shall have praise of the same, for He is the minister of God to thee for good. But if you do that which is evil, be afraid for He bears not the sword in vain. For He is the minister of God, a revenger to execute wrath upon him that does evil.” One of the greatest things about living in the United States of America, there are other nations who could say the same, one of the greatest things about living in the United States of America is this idea of law and order.

There are nations in which there is not law and order. There is anarchy. Laws may exist, but people don’t follow them. Those are very scary places to live in. I think about what’s been going on, on these college campuses as of late. I think about being a student. I have a college student. I think about being a student myself. I went to college and you’re on this campus, and there’s just mayhem going on, on the campus. We don’t have to get into the reasons why, but there’s mayhem going on, on the campus.

Imagine how fear-inducing that must be. The problem is you have a group of people, many of which aren’t even a part of the student body, they’re coming and they’re not allowing themselves, or they are resisting the powers. They are resisting the authorities that God has put in place, and they’re bringing mayhem. They’re bringing confusion. They’re bringing, some cases, violence, damage, destruction. Regardless of their reasons, that should not be so. And we know that. You can look at it and tell it should... you can look at that and say, “That should not be.”

God uses people. He made each of us and, brethren, we can be tools in God’s hands. Go to Romans chapter nine. Romans chapter nine. God made each of us and He wants to use us as tools if we let Him. Romans chapter nine, verse twenty, “No but, O man, who are you that replies against God?” This will sound familiar to what we read earlier. “Shall the thing formed say to him that formed it, why have you made me thus? Has not the potter power over the clay, of the same lump to make one vessel unto honor, and another to dishonor?”

This is coming off of Esau and how God used him in a certain way for the children of Israel. “What if God, willing to show His wrath, and to make His power known, endures with much long suffering the vessels of wrath fitted to destruction?” Brethren, we are not to judge that. God is the judge. “And that He might make known the riches of His glory on the vessels of mercy, which He had afore prepared unto glory.” God has a plan that He’s working out. He creates each of us and made each of us uniquely, and He will use us in a unique way if we allow Him to do it.

Jeremiah chapter one. Jeremiah chapter one, verse four. Jeremiah chapter one, verse four. “Then the Lord of the Lord came unto me saying, before I formed you in the belly, I knew you, and before you came out forth out of the womb, I sanctified you, and I ordained you a prophet unto the nations.” So God knew Jeremiah before he formed in the womb. He knew how He was going to use him as a tool before he even existed. That’s the same God that we’re talking about, using us as tools.

“Then said I, Ah, Lord God, behold, I can’t speak, for I’m but a child. But the Lord said unto me, say not, I am a child, for you shall go to all that I shall send you, and whatsoever I command you, you shall speak.” You are a tool in my hand. Don’t worry about it. “Be not afraid of their faces, for I’m with you to deliver you, says the Lord. Then the Lord put forth His hand and touched my mouth. And the Lord said unto me, behold I have put my words in your mouth. See, I have this day set you over the nations and over the kingdoms, to root out, and to pull down, and to destroy, and to throw down, and to build, and to plant.”

God used this man, this individual, in order to complete the task that was put before him. So, brethren, God uses people, so does the devil. So does the devil. Luke twenty-two. Luke twenty-two. I’ve been stressing being tools for God, but understand that people can also be tools for the devil. Luke twenty-two, which just came out of the Passover season. Perhaps this account is still on your mind. It’s on my mind. Luke twenty-two, verse three. Luke twenty-two, three.

“Then Satan entered into Judas surnamed Iscariot being of the number of the twelve.” Now let’s read this, or let’s read this slowly and let’s... similar to the throne room, let’s see what we’re reading here. “...And he went his way.” This is Judas now with Satan in his heart. He’s possessed of Satan. “...he went his way and commune with the chief priest and captains how he might betray unto them.” Okay.

So this man possessed of the devil is amongst others, individuals, other people, in this case, the chief priests and captains. “And they were glad. And covenanted to give him money, and he promised and sought opportunity to betray Him unto them in the absence of the multitude”. So, you had this Satan-possessed man amongst these chief priests, these religious leaders, and they’re all conspiring on how they’re going to kill Christ. And they were happy about it. They were very comfortable with it.

Judas allowed himself to be used as a tool for Satan to pick up a tool as a tool. But he allowed himself to be used by Satan, to be picked up and used for what he thought ultimately was going against God’s purpose. The amazing thing about God and His purpose, remember, God’s plan is bigger sometimes than I even think we realize. Even as Judas allowed himself to be used as a tool by Satan to go against God’s plan, he actually was fulfilling God’s plan. That’s extraordinary. That’s extraordinary. If Christ had not been killed, if He had not been betrayed, if Judas had not carried out the plan, we would have no Savior.

We’d still have sin, and the wages of sin is death. We’d still have a death sentence in front of us. But the point, brethren, is Satan can also use people as a tool. We have to be careful about our thoughts. We have to be careful about being carnal, about our flesh. The devil has a work he’s doing also. He has a plan, he’s trying to carry out also. He also works through flesh. I probably don’t have to convince you of that. Satan also works through flesh. He looks for any vessel that’s willing to be used.

So, of course, we have to make sure we guard our minds, and we guard our hearts. We want to ensure that instead of being used by Satan, of course, that we are used by God. God wants to use each of us as tools to accomplish His plan. Now, let’s get into some specifics here because, you know, I say to you, all right, you’re telling me God wants to use me. God wants to use me as a tool. He wants to use me as a tool to accomplish His plan.

Okay, that sounds good. I don’t disagree with that, but I’m not a candidate. You may be saying. I’m not someone who God can use as a tool. I’m too old. I’m too old. God can’t use me. I can barely walk around. My knees ache. My back is hurting. I just want to sit down. I’m too young. I’m not baptized. I just got baptized. God can’t use me. I don’t have anything that God can put to use. I’m not a minister. I don’t know anything. I’m not Mr. Pack. I’m not one of the ministers at Headquarters. I’m not the minister standing in front of the room. I can’t be used as a tool. Brethren, that is a very dangerous attitude. That is a very dangerous attitude.

Let’s go to Exodus chapter three. Exodus chapter three. It’s an understandable attitude humanly, but it’s very dangerous. Exodus chapter three. Let’s read about Moses. Exodus chapter three. Let’s start in verse six, kind of set it up here, Exodus three, six. “Moreover, He said, I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look upon God.” So this is God speaking. “And the Lord said, I have surely seen the affliction of my people which are in Egypt and have heard their cry by reason of their taskmasters, for I know their sorrows. And I am come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians.”

So God is doing the delivering. God is doing the delivering. “I have come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of the land into a good land and a large, into a land flowing with milk and honey, into the place of the Canaanites and the Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites.” Verse nine, “And I will therefore behold the cry of the children of Israel is come unto me, and I have also seen the oppression wherewith the Egyptians oppressed them. Come now, therefore, and I will send you...” He’s talking to Moses.

“...I will send you unto Pharaoh, that you may bring forth my people, the children of Israel, out of Egypt.” “Moses, I’m selecting you as my tool to accomplish what I just said I was going to do.” Now if I told you, any of you, that God was going to do something, would you doubt His ability to be able to do it? You would not. You would not. Now, if it involved yourself, you might have to kind of think it through, but eventually, you’d get to a place that of course God can do it. He’s God. He can do anything He wants.

Go to Chapter Four. God just told Moses, “I’m going to use you to deliver my children from Israel.” Moses responded. Verse ten, Exodus four, ten, “And Moses said unto the Lord, ‘O Lord, I am not eloquent, neither heretofore nor since you have spoken unto your servant so when you between now you’re talking to me and even when you first approach me but I am slow of speech and I am and of a slow tongue.’ “I’m old, I’m too young, I’m not a minister, I’m not qualified.

“And the Lord said unto him, Who made man’s mouth?” “I’m the potter, you’re the clay,” “…I formed you. I chose you before I formed you in the womb or who makes the dumb or the deaf or the seeing or the blind? Have not I the Lord?’” So Moses is getting a reminder, oh wait a minute, this is God I’m talking to here. I’m not talking to my brother Aaron or Miriam or whoever. God speaking, “Now, therefore, go and I will be with your mouth and teach you what you shall say.” So Moses said, “Of course, Father, I don’t know what I was thinking I’m going to do exactly what you said.”

No. Verse thirteen, “And he said, Moses, ‘O my Lord, send, I pray you, by the hand of him who you will send. Send someone else.’” Send someone else. I’m not qualified for this. I can’t do this. “And the anger of the Lord was kindled against Moses.” God was not happy. Why? Because it was a lack of faith. He didn’t believe Him. I mean, this is God talking to you. I’m talking to you face to face. I’m reminding you. I’m telling you. I’m sending you. It’s going to happen. It’s going to work. You know who I am. I just reminded you, and you’re still refusing to be a tool in my hand.

God was angry. Brethren, we want to be very careful that when God has a job for us, when He wants to use us as a tool, we have to be very careful that we don’t start making excuses. That we don’t start or make known that we don’t want to do it. God doesn’t like that. He became very angry. “And He said, ‘is not Aaron the Levite your brother? I know that he will speak well. And also, behold, he comes forth to meet you. And when he sees you, he shall be glad in his heart, and you shall speak unto him and put words in his mouth. And I will be with your mouth and with his mouth. And I will teach you what you shall do.’”

God is merciful. God is merciful. Despite Moses’ lack of faith, He accommodated him. But He was angry. God was angry. And note, God acknowledged that Aaron was a better speaker than Moses. God acknowledged that. The key, God wasn’t looking for an eloquent speaker. He was looking for Moses. He wanted Moses to fulfill, to be that tool.

When God is seeking and wanting you to do something, He wants you to do it. He’s not looking for you to be the best at whatever skill or whatever thing He may be asking you to do. God doesn’t select His tools the way we select our tools. God thinks much bigger than we think. God can see things that we can’t see. We want to be very, very, very careful, brethren. As we talk here about how we can be used by God as a tool, we want to be very careful of having that attitude that Moses had.

When God asks us to do something and it’s going to be through flesh, it’s going to be through some circumstance that we’re put into. It’s not going to be God audibly asking us to do it. But, when God wants us to do something, we have to be agreeable. We have to be agreeable. We have to be willing to do it even if it’s something new, even if it’s something we’ve not done before. I remember hearing a long time ago here at headquarters, if you’re being asked to do something, it’s because someone believes you can do it. Now, we may find out that you can’t, but someone believes that you can do it.

We have to be willing to be uncomfortable. We can’t always want to be in our comfort zones. Moses wanted to remain in his comfort zone. “Ah, look, I’m not really an eloquent speaker. Ah, that’s not really for me. I mean, ah, I know you’re God and all, but that’s not really for me. You made a bad choice. Pick my brother.” God was angry. Moses eventually figured it out, but it was a lot more difficult than necessary. Turn to Acts chapter nine. Acts chapter nine. Often God will choose and work with those as tools whom we least suspect. Acts chapter nine. It’s a well-known account of Saul and his change to Paul. Acts chapter nine.

I should read a little bit. Acts chapter nine, verse six. “And he says, Saul...” here he is on the road to Damascus. “...and he trembled and astonished, said, “Lord, what will you have me to do?” Now we just talked about having this attitude of willingness. And granted, he had to be struck blind, the road to Damascus, but he got to a point of, “What will you have me to do?” Brethren, the faster we can get to a “what will you have me to do” attitude, the more easily God can use us as a tool. “And the Lord said unto him, ‘arise and go into the city and it shall be told you what you must do.’”

So we have the attitude. We also have to be willing at times to wait to get the answer to what God would have us to do. Dropped onto verse to verse fifteen. “But the Lord said unto him, ‘Go your way for he is a chosen vessel...’” He’s talking to Ananias here. Ananias couldn’t believe that, okay, this man who was murdering Christians and doing all the things to fight against your purpose, now you’re asking me to work with him and to help him to be prepared as a tool for you to use him. “The Lord said unto him, ‘Go your way for he is a chosen vessel unto me.”

So he’s a tool. Saul becoming Paul is a tool for me that I want to use to bear my name before the Gentiles and the kings and the children of Israel. Now, snuck in there is the fact that Ananias was a tool also. He was a tool used to prepare Saul becoming Paul, as a tool also. But part of God’s plan was to use a man for the Gentiles, and the kings, and the children of Israel, and He decided to use Saul, eventually became Paul.

Verse twenty, “And straightway...” This is referring to Paul, “Straightway he preached Christ in the synagogues, that He is the Son of God.” Now here’s the point, here remember I said that God will sometimes use those you least expect, and it could be you. It could be me, but God can use as tools those we least expect. Verse twenty-one, “But all that heard him, all that heard Paul, were amazed and said, ‘Is this not he that destroyed them which called on this name in Jerusalem, and came hither for that intent, that he might bring them bound unto the chief priests?’ But Saul increased the more in strength, and confounded the Jews which dwelt in Damascus, proving that this is very Christ.”

Now, who has more credibility that God exists, that Christ is the Son of God, that He came bringing the gospel, that He died so man can have a relationship with the Father? Who has more credibility? A person who’s always been on board with that thinking, maybe they were raised in that thinking, very comfortable with it, very familiar to them, or someone who days, weeks, months earlier were killing Christians, locking them up, torturing them. Who has more credibility?

Now, if that very person who was just doing that, is now saying, “You know what, this God is real. His son is real. His son died so our sins could be forgiven.” Who has more credibility? Of course, it’s the man who was killing Christians because people go, “You know what, there must be a God. It must be real.” God will use things that are not always expected in order to fulfill His purpose. That’s why, brethren, we have to be very careful as we look at God using us. We have to be very careful that we don’t take that attitude that Moses took. “Oh, that’s not for me. I’m not the one God is wanting to use.”

Saul could have had that same attitude, “You know, I believe you Lord, but I was killing people. There’s no way I can do it.” He didn’t say that. Lord, what will you have me to do? That’s the attitude that God is looking for. God can use us in all sorts of ways for all sorts of things. Go to First Corinthians chapter seven. First Corinthians chapter seven. God can use us in all sorts of ways for all sorts of things. Here’s just one example, a very important example, an example that’s near and dear to me, an example that’s near and dear to many of you, depending on your situation.

First Corinthians chapter seven, verse thirteen. First Corinthians seven, thirteen, “And the woman, which has a husband, and that believes not...” So this is a woman who has God’s spirit, it’s a member of God’s Church, a converted woman, who has an unbelieving mate. We’re talking about God using you in ways that you may not think, and you may not expect. “...A woman which has a husband that believes not, and if he be pleased to dwell with her, let her not leave him.”

So you have a person, a wife, a woman who comes into the Church. She’s married. God calls her, does not call her husband. Does God say, “You know what, he’s an unbeliever, leave him?” No. If that man is pleased to dwell, if he is okay with his wife attending and learning the truths of God and going to Sabbath services and doing all the things, going to the feast, keeping the holy days, if he’s okay with that, let her not leave him. Why? Why? “For the unbelieving husband is sanctified by the wife, and the unbelieving wife is sanctified by the husband.” If it goes the other way. I said this is near and dear to my heart. “Else were your children unclean, but now they are holy.”

So this parent who is in God’s Church, their spouse may not be attending God’s Church. They may have children who are attending but don’t have God’s Spirit, that one mate can be the reason that that husband, flip it around, that wife, those children are sanctified. God is using that mate as a tool for the sanctification of that husband or that wife and those children.

God can use you, me, all of us in ways that we may not think, or we may not expect. Of course, if you’re that believing wife or that believing husband, you’re doing all the things that God would expect. You’re obeying Him. You’re following His ways. And the unbelieving spouse and the children are seeing that. And God will use you as a tool to sanctify that unbelieving spouse and those children. That’s huge. That’s huge. I know you, those of you with an unbelieving mate, you know that.

I’m sure that’s a part of your prayer every day. Every day. You being a believer, it’s not only in your family, it extends to those outside the Church. Ephesians chapter two. Ephesians chapter two. God can use you and I to eventually save our spouse, to encourage our children to get baptized, to follow God’s way of life, and it even extends outside the home. Ephesians chapter two, verse ten. This is a setup verse, Ephesians two, ten. “For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God has before ordained that we should walk in Him.”

So this is all built on the fact that we are displaying good works. Understand that we are God’s workmanship. We were crafted. We were put together. He is the potter. We are the clay. We were molded. We were shaped to do good works. That’s what God expects of us as tools. Matthew five. Matthew five. I talked about our good works extending beyond our beyond our household. Matthew chapter five verse fourteen. Matthew chapter five verse fourteen. “You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hid.”

That’s just a different way to say what we’ve been talking about. We talked about being... I’ve been talking about being a tool. In this case, it’s talking about us being a light, being a city that is set on a hill, something physical that men and women can see. “Neither do men light a candle and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick that and it gives light unto all that are in the house. Let your light shine, so let your light so shine before men that they may see your good works.” Why?

“To glorify your Father which is in heaven.” Brethren, one of the best tools that we can be in the hands of God is to be a light to those that are around us. And that just simply means to be different. To do the things that glorify God. If we simply do the things that glorify God, it can be a challenge. But, if we simply focus on and do the things that glorify God, we are automatically a light. It’s just by definition. If we’re doing the things of God, if we’re doing the works of God, if we’re obeying the things that He wants us to obey, we are automatically being a light. And, therefore, we are a tool that God is using.

We’re a city that’s on the hill that everyone can look and say, “You know what? I want to go and be a part of that city.” And, if they’re not thinking it now, they will. I want to be a part of that. That’s different. That’s different from all the things that I see. Brethren, we must have those good works. We also, rather, should do what First Peter five tells us. If we want to be effective tools in the hands of God, we must do the following. First Peter chapter five, let’s pick it up in verse five. First Peter five, five. “Likewise, you younger, submit yourselves to the older,” that could be in age or in the faith or in a certain job or endeavor.

“Yes, all of you be subject one to another. All of you,” us, “...be subject one to another and be clothed with humility for God resists the proud and gives grace to the humble. Humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God that He may exalt you in due time.” Let’s go to one more verse before I give some commentary on that. James chapter four. James chapter four. So it says to humble ourselves and God will lift us up. James chapter four, verse ten. Just one verse. “Humble yourselves in the sight of God, and He will lift you up.”

As I read those two verses, I couldn’t help but think about this table. You have this workbench, and of course, we’re talking about tools. And you have God who’s surveying His table. He’s looking at His tools. He’s thinking about, “Okay, I want to get this accomplished. I need this task, something I need to get done.” I couldn’t help but to think God will pick up the humblest tool that’s available to Him. Why? Because he resists the proud. Brethren, if we’re proud, we could be laying on the table but God has no use for us.

In fact, He can’t pick us up. He can’t use us. But, if we’re humble, if we humble ourselves, we, by definition, make ourselves available for God to pick us up and to use us in His mighty hands. It’s an amazing picture. It’s an amazing picture. God wants to accomplish a task. He’s going to use whatever tools are available to Him. Brethren, we want to be a tool available to Him to help Him accomplish what He wants to accomplish. Humility draws God to us. Pride pushes Him away from us. It’s very simple. Very simple. Pride repels God from us.

Proverbs twenty-two. Proverbs twenty-two. If we want to be used by God, if you’re sitting here thinking, “You know what? I want to be used by God. He’s up there saying, I want to be... we should be used by God, we should be tools, I want to do it.” Be humble. Be humble. It’s a big part of it. Proverbs twenty-two, just one more verse on humility. Proverbs twenty-two verse four. “By humility and the fear of God,” those two go together, “...are riches and honor and life.” I really like that verse. By humility and the fear of God, we can obtain riches, honor, and life.

So, to be an effective tool in God’s hand, of course, we have to be humble. We also talked a little bit about it, but we also have to have a willing attitude. Let’s go to Matthew chapter four. Matthew chapter four. This sets up a personal example, a personal story I can give you. Matthew chapter four. This is about having a willing attitude. Matthew chapter four verse eighteen. “And Jesus walking by the sea of Galilee saw two brethren, Simon called Peter and Andrew, his brother, casting a net into the sea, for they were fishers. And He said unto them, ‘Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.’”

Now I chose that, first of all, because of their attitude. They immediately, as you continue to read, that straight away it says here, straight away they left their nets and followed Him. So they had a willing attitude. But I also selected that verse, and you’re thinking, how can I be used by God? What are some ways God can use me? And I chose that verse and it relays a personal story. I don’t always get this right, but this happened to be a time that I kind of stumbled into it.

I remember being asked, at one point I had just been working at headquarters maybe over a year or so, and I was working in buildings and grounds at the time, and I was asked to run editorial. And two men had come sat me down in a conference room and, you know, when you got two senior ministers coming to meet with you, it’s very comforting as you sit there and, “Okay, what did I do? Okay, nothing hopefully.” And you sit... we all do it, brethren. But we sat and they offered me the editorial position. Now, if you saw the thought bubble over my head, it’s, “There’s no way I can do that job. I have no clue what I’m doing. Do they not know that?”

I read the magazines. I read the literature. I read the publications. I can’t do that. I don’t know how to do that. But one of the things that I got right being at headquarters is when you’re asked to do something, say yes. Now that has its limits. That has its limits. If you can’t do it, say so. But, generally speaking, and in the case of that question for me, I said yes. It was hard. It was hard. I doubted myself. Not only was I.. you know, remember, I’m coming into run editorial, so I have a staff. And all of the staff seemed to know everything. And I felt like I knew nothing.

I was terrified. God was using me, giving me the opportunity to be used as a tool. Now, why do I bring up the fishers’ point? I went on for a couple of years not really feeling super comfortable in what I was doing. I was kind of stumbling around. Hopefully, my staff didn’t recognize it that way, but, you know, just not really feeling comfortable until eventually I got to a point and understood and realized in order to do my job, I actually did have a background to do it. It’s a much longer story, but it was something that I discovered and I know for a fact God showed it to me, but I have a background in managing projects.

So, when I was asked to run editorial, I’m thinking, “Okay, writing, editing, printing magazines, drawing pictures, I can do none of that. I don’t know how to do any of that.” But it turns out that a part of running the editorial department is managing projects. I had a very, at least a lot stronger project background than I did writing, editing, drawing, and all of that. But, brethren, I didn’t know it at the time. But who did know? God knew. God knew. Just like these men were fishers, and they could say, you know, Christ said, “You know what, I’ll make you fishers of men.” “Well, we just know how to catch fish.

But they have the background for God to use them to eventually catch people. I share that to say make sure you have a willing and a humble attitude. You never know how God wants to use you. And, oftentimes, you just have to go through the process of growing and learning to become the person that God would have you to be. As we start to conclude, brethren, let’s go to Revelation chapter five. Revelation chapter five.

We have to remember God has a plan in place. We can’t always see what He’s doing. We can’t always understand His plan, but we have to trust Him. We have to have the faith of what God is doing. Revelation chapter five. Okay. Here we go. Revelation chapter five verse ten. This is just a reminder of what God is doing. We’re starting in verse nine, “And they sung a new song saying, you are worthy to take the book and to open the seals thereof, for you were slain and has redeemed us to God by the blood of every kindred, tongue, and people and nation.” So, remember, God’s plan is much bigger. It involves all human beings. Remember Genesis, remember Hebrews. “And has made us unto our God kings and priests, and we shall reign on the earth.”

Brethren, there is an extraordinary project that God has underway, an extraordinary thing that He’s doing in working with mankind, working with human beings. We see here He’s creating kings and priests to reign on the earth. We can say it many different ways. Sons, He’s creating sons, brethren unto Christ, those giving dominion to His sons and daughters. Brethren, we are the tools God is using to complete His plan.

He uses us as examples this side of the kingdom, where we’re fleshly living examples, but He’s going to continue to use us as teachers on the other side of the kingdom as well. He’s going to continue to use us as tools, just like He uses tools to fully complete His plan for all mankind. Brethren, be willing to sacrifice, be willing to be humble, to be willing, to be malleable. Be willing to do all of those things, and God promises that He is willing to use you as a tool.